October is the month when Peruvians celebrate The Lord of The Miracles festivities in Lima. Buenos Aires, however, celebrated two gaming shows in a tumultuous month, with SAGSE Buenos Aires 2008 on the one hand and MAGIA on the other, but both on the very same dates. And this was no coincidence.

What was a coincidence was the celebration of Brazil's Copag de Amazonia, celebrating its 100th Anniversary in the legendary City of Manaus, and also on the same days. The three day party affair could not be changed owing to timetable arrangements for both partners: Belgium's Carta Mundi and Copag. They tell me there will not be another three days like them for another 100 years!

In his welcome message to the Sagse Buenos Aires show, Giorgio Gennari, president of organizers Monografie S.A., makes the point that for an expo to be called as such, the event must list at least 100 participating companies exclusive of friends and relations.

Whilst we respect everyone's opinion, we believe that quite simply industry expos must be representative of a particular business sector, and be able to have as participants clients first and friends and relations last. The point is that if a business venture is the result of a whim and this compromises the success of the business, then let the businessman suffer the consequences of his whim. Under no circumstance should such a venture threaten anybody else's resources. Whimsical ventures are the result of great egos, and these should have no place in business.

It was with the criteria that respect a sector's representation in an expo that Datateam, with more than 24 years in B2B media, publishing and event organizing amongst other business ventures, decided to enter into a strategic alliance with Mexico's GAMMEX 2009 organizers. Datateam made their decision at the end of the second day of SAGSE Buenos Aires after nearly four weeks of negotiations.

GAMMEX 2009 is an event for the amusement sector in Mexico, which is the principal recreational activity in the country. Owing to the nature of current public demand, GAMMEX has decided to address its event to what is known as the amusement & gaming sector that groups together kiddies rides, amusement halls, bingos and even betting and lottery operators, as long as they are within the regulatory framework of Mexico's laws.

Looking at the great entertainment sector of Mexico as a pyramid, the new gaming and lotteries permit holders are just the top of the iceberg in a country with more that 100 million people, who are for the most part amusement end-users. With more than ten years in business in Mexico's amusement sector, the GAMMEX 2009 organizers anticipate thousands of attendees to the event that will take place at the World Trade Center Conference and Conventions venue in the City of Mexico on 1 & 2 April.

In Datateam, we are aware that the expo ELA 2009 will take place in May, also in Mexico City, and as industry supporters we will be pleased to back up the great effort made by the organizers of such an outstanding event, just as we do with all other gaming events worldwide.

For some time now we have heard comments from gaming business people on the fact that there are too many expo events in the industry. On the matter of diverse offer we have also heard from gaming operators, who repeat almost verbatim the fact that there are increasingly more and innovative products from new manufacturers bringing out new games from many countries worldwide. All we can say is that as long as there is a semblance of business endeavour in people, new products are going to be made available to end users for ever more.

In such cases, the purchasing criteria for the decision makers will be a matter of the right choice as to whether one product or another gets the thumbs up, because in the market place there are no monopolies, oligopolies or exclusive territories for anyone. Like other gaming products, gaming shows have been, are and will be on offer on double bills in places such as Las Vegas, Buenos Aires and London, where a local magazine is organizing an expo on the same days as the London Show in January 2009.

That there are gaming shows on the same days is a matter for extreme competition, and in this case everyone will suffer in one way or another. In Mexico we expect to be able to live each one on its own little ranch, with each event keeping a respectful distance. At Datateam we will ensure that harmony is the byword to support the growth of the amusement, gaming and betting sectors in Mexico. (E-10.24.08)

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